Fiber optic communication systems are becoming prevalent in part because service providers want to deliver high band width communication capabilities (e.g., data and voice) to customers. Fiber optic communication systems employ a network of fiber optic cables to transmit large volumes of data and voice signals over relatively long distances. Fiber optic connectors are an important part of most fiber optic communication systems. Fiber optic connectors allow optical fibers to be quickly optically connected without requiring a splice. Fiber optic connectors can include single fiber connectors and multi-fiber connectors.
A typical multi-fiber fiber optic connector includes a ferrule assembly supported at a distal end of a connector housing. The ferrule assembly can include a multi-fiber ferrule mounted in a hub. A spring is used to bias the ferrule assembly in a distal direction relative to the connector housing. The multi-fiber ferrule functions to support the end portions of multiple optical fibers. The multi-fiber ferrule has a distal end face at which polished ends of the optical fibers are located. When two multi-fiber fiber optic connectors are interconnected, the distal end faces of the multi-fiber ferrules oppose and are biased toward one another by their respective springs. With the multi-fiber fiber optic connectors connected, their respective optical fibers are coaxially aligned such that the end faces of the optical fibers directly oppose one another. In this way, optical signals can be transmitted from optical fiber to optical fiber through the aligned end faces of the optical fibers.
As indicated above, multi-fiber ferrules are configured for supporting the ends of multiple optical fibers. Typically, the optical fibers are arranged in one or more rows within the multi-fiber ferrule. When two multi-fiber ferrules are interconnected, the fibers of the rows of optical fibers align with one another. For most multi-fiber ferrules, it is desirable for the optical fibers to protrude distally outwardly from the distal end faces of the multi-fiber ferrules. This type of protrusion can assist in making physical fiber-to-fiber contact when two multi-fiber connectors are mated. U.S. Pat. No. 6,957,920, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, discloses a multi-fiber ferrule having protruding optical fibers of the type described above.
Currently, multi-fiber ferrules are made of a material that is softer than the material of the optical fibers. The difference in hardness between the multi-fiber ferrule and its corresponding optical fibers allows polishing processes to be used for generating optical fiber protrusions. Specifically, slurry or flock films are used to simultaneously polish both the end face of the ferrule and the corresponding optical fibers supported by the ferrule. Because the material composition of the ferrule is softer than the material composition of the optical fibers, the ferrule material is removed at a faster rate than the optical fiber material thereby causing the optical fibers to protrude from the end face of the ferrule after the polishing process. U.S. Pat. No. 6,106,368 discloses a flock film based polishing process of the type described.
Generating optical fiber protrusions via the methods described above can present a number of issues. First, the processes can be time consuming and require the use of relatively expensive consumables. Furthermore, polishing processes generate considerable residue and require substantial cleaning operations. Moreover, while the processes described above provide can be used to increase the optical fiber height at the end face of a ferrule, other end face geometries of the optical fiber (e.g., tilt angle and radius) are also impacted.